A university student has blotted his copybook after he was caught drink-driving by police as a pal was hanging out of his car.

Chesterfield magistrates’ court heard on Thursday, July 27, how Daniel Wilde, 19, of Arundel Close, Dronfield Woodhouse, was spotted by police on Sheffield Road, at Stonegravels, Chesterfield, with a passenger hanging out of the front side window of his Vauxhall Corsa.

Prosecuting solicitor Becky Allsop said: “It was 1.40am, on July 9, when police attention was drawn to the Vauxhall Corsa after seeing a passenger hanging out of the front side window of the vehicle without wearing a seatbelt.”

The defendant was stopped and he gave a reading of 53microgrammes of alcohol in 100millilitres of breath when the legal limit is 35microgrammes.

Wilde, who has no previous convictions, pleaded guilty to exceeding the alcohol drink-drive limit.

Defence solicitor Steve Brint said: “He’s a young man at university and is studying Sport and Exercise Science at Nottingham Trent University and he has just completed his first year and he had been at home and had been playing cricket throughout the day.

“A friend of his who was hanging out of the window of the car had persuaded him to drive him into Chesterfield and it was some time after he had been drinking and he thought he would be fine.

“Police had no reason to stop the vehicle other than seeing a passenger hanging out of the window.”

Mr Brint added: “He’s aware he will have a criminal record when he leaves university and it will be detrimental to him as he is compared with his contemporaries.”

Magistrates fined Wilde £80 and ordered him to pay £85 costs and a £30 victim surcharge.

He was also disqualified from driving for 12 months but this could be reduced by three months if Wilde completes a drink-drive rehabilitation course.